"ARISE, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people; but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising."
There is work for every one to do if he will co-operate with God. "For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." Holy intelligences are waiting to work through us. If we will consecrate heart and mind to the service of God, doing the work he has for us to do, and walking in the footsteps of Jesus, our hearts will become sacred harps, every chord of which will send forth praise and thanksgiving to the Lamb sent by God to take away the sins of the world.
The life of Christ and his labors of love shame and condemn the unbelief shown by many. He has promised: "Ask, and it shall be given you," "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly Father give good things unto them that ask him?" Those who do not know Jesus as their personal Saviour, do not avail themselves of the promised blessings; but to all who believe, he is as the Tree of Life in the Paradise of God. His branches reach to this world, that the blessings which he has purchased for us may be brought within our reach. Why, then, do we spend our precious time bemoaning our weakness, when Christ has made every provision for us to be strong? He has given us a Comforter, the Holy Spirit, which will present to us the precious fruit from the Tree of Life. From this tree we may pluck and eat, and we may then guide others to it, that they also may eat. Why should we mourn our inefficiency, when the heavenly angels are waiting to co-operate with us, to make us living agencies, blessing the world with the messages God will give us to bear.
If you have neglected to place your hand in the hand of Christ, you are in constant danger of being deceived. Many are spiritually weak because instead of cultivating faith, they look at the discouraging features of their work. In the time of trial they turn to humanity for aid, but in doing this, they lean upon a broken reed; for in humanity they will often be sorely disappointed. The distrust and suspicion thus awakened bear their own fruit.
Christ would have our thoughts center upon him. After he has given us many tokens of his willingness to help in any emergency, he is grieved if we withdraw our eyes from his sufficiency to look at our own weakness or the weaknesses of others. Look away from self to Jesus Christ, the Life of every blessing, every grace, the Life of all that is precious and valuable to the children of God. We have no cause to bemoan our own inefficiency, because Christ has shown himself to be an ever present help in time of need.
The Lord Jesus is our strength and happiness, the great storehouse from which, on every occasion, men may draw strength. As we study him, talk of him, become more and more able to behold him,—as we avail ourselves of his grace, and receive the blessings he proffers us, we have something with which to help others. Filled with gratitude, we communicate to others the blessings that have been freely given us. Thus receiving and imparting, we grow in grace; and a rich current of praise and gratitude constantly flows from our lips; the sweet spirit of Jesus kindles thanksgiving in our hearts, and our souls are uplifted with a sense of security. The unfailing, inexhaustible righteousness of Christ becomes our righteousness by faith.
When temptations assail you, as they surely will, when care, perplexity, and darkness seem to surround your soul, look to the place where you last saw the light, rest in Christ's love and under his protecting shade; for in his shadow we may find rest and peace. When sin struggles for the mastery in the human heart, when guilt oppresses the soul and burdens the conscience, when unbelief clouds the mind, remember that Christ's grace is sufficient to subdue sin and expel the darkness. Jesus, the sin-pardoning Saviour, is our Advocate in the courts of heaven, and he calls upon us to "arise and shine," because his glory has risen upon us.
One reason of the spiritual feebleness of to-day is the low estimate that believers in Christ are constantly inclined to form of themselves. Christ paid an infinite price for us, and he desires his chosen heritage to value themselves according to the price he placed upon them. Do not disappoint Jesus by placing a low estimate upon yourselves. Embrace the opportunities and privileges which will increase your value with God; for by accepting the treasures of his grace you will become precious and lovely in his sight. Practical godliness will run through your lives like threads of gold, and as God beholds your consecration to him, he will say, "I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir." All heaven rejoices over the weak, faulty human soul that gives itself to Jesus, and in his strength lives a life of purity.
Our path to the Paradise of God will be often intercepted by the tempter, who is intent on weakening our faith by hiding the rays of the Sun of Righteousness. Our Saviour has warned us that through much tribulation we must enter into the kingdom of God. "These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world." "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you; not as the world giveth give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." For every service we render, every self-denial, every sacrifice we make, the Lord has guaranteed to requite us, not because it is a debt he owes, but because his heart is full of infinite love, full of mercy and tenderness. In this life he will repay us a hundredfold, and in the world to come he will give us everlasting life.
Every moment is exceedingly precious. Those who overcome much, love Jesus the most, and in that day, when every one is rewarded according to his works, they will be put next to Christ, within the inner circle; honored, yes, greatly honored. "He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels."6In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might. Know that he loves you, and will be your constant efficiency. "Arise and shine; for thy light is come." "Behold, bless ye the Lord, all ye servants of the Lord, which by night stand in the house of the Lord. Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord. The Lord that made heaven and earth bless thee out of Zion."
Jesus Shall Save His People
"Thou shalt call his name JESUS; for he shall save his people from their sins."
THE ground was frozen and stiff and hard;
The wind came chill over tree and sward;
The snowflakes were silently flutt'ring down,
Covering from sight old Mother Earth's brown.
While watching the snowflakes merrily fall
O'er village and farm, fast clothing them all
With soft, downy robes of pure, spotless white,
Gleaming like gems in the pale, wintry light,
Making a picture more lovely than art,—
Than man to his canvas can ever impart,—
The past was recalled; and memory's chimes
Told of longings to visit other countries and climes.
Our hearts may reach out toward the grand scenes
of earth;
Renowned spots to view may seem of great worth;
But God, in his infinite wisdom, may see
'Tis best that those wishes ungranted may be.
But, looking by faith, my eyes now behold
A country whose grandeur words cannot unfold,—
A country we all, if we will, yet shall see
If we'll turn from our sins and to Jesus now flee.
Fadeless the flowers; the grass living green,
Waving in breeze, with silver-gold sheen;
Through shady vales flow fern-bordered rills;
Blithe are the birds, and glad their sweet trills.
The fair Tree of Life, bearing twelve luscious fruits,
On each side the River of Life plants its roots;
Perfect in beauty, all nature shines bright;
Forever has flown sin's dark, dismal night.
No harm can befall, no tempter annoy;
There's nothing to fear, naught to hurt or destroy;
By the lamb lies the lion, grown gentle and mild,
Each played with and petted and led by a child.
There's never a sickness, no pain, death, nor woe;
There storms never come, chill winds never blow;
Naught but joy, endless joy, undimmed perfect bliss;
Will you freely surrender that blest world for this?
Christ our Redeemer is there, Christ our King;
'Tis his praises the ransomed with rich music sing;
The hills everlasting reëcho the strain,—
All nature shouts anthems to him who was slain.
A city I see whose mansions outshine
The finest of castles, of earth's piles sublime;
Of gold are those mansions, of jasper its wall;
The glory of God gives splendor to all.
Its gates are of pearl; its streets, too, are gold;
This city resplendent shall never grow old;
Its bejeweled foundations are sparkling with light;
Its dwellers are dressed in robes clean and white.
Soon Jesus will come, his face beaming love,
To gather his children for "home" now above;
World after world will be viewed by our eyes
As we, by the angels, are borne through the skies.
But our sins must be cleansed, every stain washed
away,
Would we wing our glad flight with Jesus that day.
Shall we not to him give our sins and our care,
That he for that journey you and me can prepare?
His power is needed our sins to remove,
And fit us to live in the kingdom of love;
His might is so great, his affection so deep,
We may trust him the victory to gain and to keep.
"I'll bring you to Zion," the Saviour doth say;
"I'll lead you safely along the strait way."
Then O, let him lead us, and free us from sin,
The city's gates open, and say, "Enter in"!
Knoxville, Tenn.
True Faith a Power to Work
By Alonzo T. Jones
CATHOLICISM vs. CHRISTIANITY. NO. 4.
ROME gives an illustration to show the difference between the faith of Christ and "the faith of the creed," and here it is:—
To show the unfairness of taking the word "faith," occurring in the Holy Scripture, in this new Protestant sense of trust in Christ for pardon, to the exclusion of any other dispositions or means, and not in the Catholic sense of belief in revealed truths, . . . allow me to use the following illustration: Suppose a man afflicted with a grave disease sends for a physician of repute. The physician comes and prescribes, and to inspire the patient with more confidence, tells him, "Only believe in me and you will be cured." Can we suppose that the poor sufferer, on the departure of the physician, would say: "I shall take no medicine, for the physician said: 'Only believe and you will be cured'?" This way of reasoning and acting seems impossible to be adopted in regard to the cure of the body, but respecting the cure of the soul it is an unhappy matter of fact that thousands of persons fall into this sad mistake.—Catholic Belief, pp. 374, 375.
Now there is not the least doubt that this statement perfectly illustrates the difference between the faith of Christ and Catholic faith, for it proceeds altogether upon the view that there is no more power or virtue in the word of God than there is in the word of a man; that the word of Christ, the heavenly Physician, has no more power to cure than has the word of an earthly physician. And that is indeed just the difference between true faith, the faith of God, and Catholic faith, "the faith of the creed."
True Faith a Power to Work.
True faith finds in the word of God, the word of the heavenly Physician, the living—creative—power of God to accomplish all that this word says. When the centurion asked Jesus to cure his sick servant, Jesus said, "I will come and heal him." But the centurion said, "Speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed." And Jesus himself decided this to be "faith," and even "so great faith" as he had not found in Israel, and then said to the centurion, "Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour." Matt. 8:5-13.
A nobleman also came to Jesus beseeching him: "Sir, come down ere my child die." Jesus saith unto him, "Go thy way; thy son liveth. And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken unto him, and he went his way." And when the man neared his home "his servants met him, and told him, saying, Thy son liveth. Then inquired he of them the hour when he began to amend. And they said unto him, Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him. So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which Jesus said unto him, Thy son liveth: and himself believed, and his whole house." John 4:46-53.
This is faith, genuine faith. It finds in the word of God itself all sufficiency to accomplish all that the word expresses. And over and over again, in fact in all the cases recorded in the New Testament, it was believing the word spoken and thus receiving the power of that word to accomplish of itself the thing that was spoken—it was this faith that healed the sick, restored the palsied, made the impotent to walk, and forgave the sinner. This is believing God. This is faith.
But when the word of God is held to be as powerless as the word of a man; when the word of Jesus Christ is held to be as empty of healing virtue as is the word of a mere human physician; when the word of the living God is thus reduced to the level of the word of men, and to all intents and purposes is received as the word of men, and the words of men themselves, formulated into a creed, are really put in the place of the word of God; then such belief, such faith, is only of themselves and is as powerless and as empty of saving virtue as are the men themselves. It is the same story over again, of the effort of men to save themselves by themselves from themselves. And this "faith" that is altogether from men themselves, that stands only in the words and wisdom of men—this "faith of the creed" that is identical with the "faith" of the devils—this, by her own showing, by her own boast, and by her own illustration, is the faith of the Catholic Church. Very good. We accept her showing in the case. Undoubtedly it is the truth. The illustration is perfectly satisfactory.
Self to Work It Out.
There is another statement that she makes which so clearly reveals again the essential nature of the "faith" which is held, and the salvation that is offered, by the Catholic Church, that it is worth quoting. Here it is:—
We seem to hear Jesus, our heavenly Physician, say: I died for all, and thereby prepared in my blood a remedy for all. If you would have the merits of my passion and death applied to you, to free your souls from sin, you must . . . believe that I am what I declare myself to be, and believe what I teach. Do also what I have told you to do, and then you shall have the merits of my passion and death applied to you and you shall be justified.
This is in very substance, and even in terms, the old covenant. It is identical with the covenant "from the Mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage." Gal. 4:24. Here are the terms of the old covenant, the covenant from Sinai: "Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is Mine: and ye shall be unto Me a kingdom of priests and an holy nation." "And all the people answered together, and said, All that the Lord hath spoken we will do." Ex. 19:4-6, 8.
Their agreement to obey his voice indeed, was an agreement to keep the Ten Commandments indeed. For when his voice was heard from Sinai the Ten Commandments alone were spoken. And of these it is written: "Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man." Eccl. 12:13.
So that in substance this covenant from Sinai, just as certainly as this Catholic statement, says, I have done this great thing for you. Now, if you would have the benefit of it, believe what I teach, do also what I have told you to do, and then you shall have it and you shall be justified. And the people all said they would do it, and this, too, with the hope of being justified. These two statements are identical in substance and in doctrine.
The thought of both is that man must do righteousness in order to be righteous, instead of first being righteous in order to do righteousness.
Meaning of the Old Covenant.
It will not do, tho, to say that as the Lord made the statement from Sinai, therefore this statement from Rome is truth. The Lord had a purpose in this covenant from Sinai, even tho it did then "gender to bondage." That covenant from Sinai corresponds to Hagar in the family of Abraham. The children of that covenant, the people who entered into it, correspond to Ishmael, the child of Hagar. As Hagar was a bondwoman, so the child that was born of her was a bondchild. And thus she gendered to bondage. As Hagar represents the covenant from Sinai, and her child was a bondchild, so the covenant from Sinai gendered to bondage and the children of that covenant were bondchildren.
Moreover, Ishmael was "born after the flesh." And as Ishmael represents the children of the covenant, so they were "after the flesh" and knew only the birth of the flesh. Knowing only the birth of the flesh, and minding only the things of the flesh, they thought themselves capable of fulfilling all the righteousness of God. The Lord knew full well that they could not do it; but they did not know it, and they would not believe that they could not do it. In order to convince them that they could not do it, and enable them to see it so plainly that they themselves would confess their inability to do it, the Lord gave them a full and fair opportunity to try.
Within forty days they had fully demonstrated their utter inability to do what the Lord had told them, and what they had freely promised to do. They were in deeper bondage than ever. They were then willing to have the Lord deliver them from the bondage of sin to the liberty of righteousness by his own power, through his own word, in his own promise, even as he had delivered their father Abraham. In a word, they were then willing to attain to righteousness, to be justified, by faith, instead of trying to obtain it by works. They were willing to be children of promise, instead of children of the flesh.
Having found by this experience that "the minding of the flesh is enmity against God, and is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be," they were willing to be born again and of the Spirit of God, rather than to trust longer to the ways of the birth of the flesh. Having found that by this old and temporary covenant they were lost, they were willing to be saved by the new and everlasting covenant, which is this:—
"I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts; and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people; and they shall not teach every man his neighbor and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord; for they shall all know me from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more."
In this covenant there is no "if." It depends not upon what we shall do, but upon what God will do "unto all and upon all them that believe, for there is no difference. For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God."
A Wicked Perversion.
Such was the covenant from Sinai, such was its nature, and such its purpose. And that the recording of it, with the nature and experience of those who caused it to be made and who entered into it, was necessary for future ages, is demonstrated by this repetition of it in the Catholic system of "faith." That covenant was faulty, as it rested upon the promise of the people to obey God's law without faith in Jesus Christ; but this repetition of it is infinitely faulty and altogether bad, as compared with the original example. For there, altho it was their own sinfulness and self-righteousness that led to the making of it, yet through the sad experience of it God would draw them away from themselves to the knowledge of Christ. While here and in this, the Papacy takes the very revelation of the Gospel of Christ itself and perverts it into the old covenant, and through this perversion draws men away from Christ to the exaltation of self. It puts the old covenant in the place of the new. It puts works in the place of faith. It puts bondage in the place of freedom. It puts ceremonies in the place of Christ. And it puts man in the place of God.7
This is the Papacy, and this her doctrine of "faith." And as God said of Hagar and Ishmael in the family of Abraham, and of the covenant from Sinai and its children in the family of Israel, so he says of this same wicked thing as it would be in the family of Christianity: "Cast out the bondwoman and her son; for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman." Gal. 4:30.
There never was a truer description of the Papacy than that it is "a method of forgetting God, which shall pass as a method of remembering him."
GOD'S LAW IN CHRIST, AND IN US.
By R. C. Porter
BY R. C. PORTER.
"AND the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the Only Begotten of the Father), full of grace and truth." This is he of whom it was said, "Lo, I come; in the volume of the book it is written of me, I delight to do thy will, O my God; yea, thy law is within my heart." Christ is here presented in his relation to the law of God. This prophecy of him is a very forcible statement of the exceeding depth of his experience in that relation. Every act and every purpose is here set forth as based upon that foundation of all good principles, God's holy law of love.
This law is all-embracing, comprehending even the character of the eternal God from whom it came. It is but the expression of the principles of the character of its Author. Since God is love, the law is love. His purpose in giving it to others whom he had created, was to place before them the instruction which, if heeded, would develop them into his own character. So intimate was the relationship of Christ with the law, that the loveliness of his character was but the reflection of its principles. All the honor that came to Christ was alike honor to the law by which his character was formed. The prophet seeing this, truthfully said, "He shall magnify the law and make it honorable."
Paul, speaking by the Spirit, states the same truth most forcibly in Rom. 3: 21: "But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets." In Christ the righteousness of God was manifest, and the righteousness of God is expressed in the law, so that the law and the prophets witness to the life of Christ that it is the righteousness of God which they demand. Here the law for the first time since sin entered was enabled to declare absolute righteousness of any man in this world. The man, Christ Jesus, has prevailed, for "in him was no sin." He stands perfect before the law from birth to death. In him the law is revealed in all its glory. The Word is made flesh indeed, and dwells among us, while we behold its glory in the character of the only-begotten Son of God. Thus the law is manifest, and made to appear in its true character in the light of his life.
Christ's statement, "If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love," is further proof of this relation. He also says, "The words which I speak are not mine, but His that sent me." And best of all, "Of mine own self I can do nothing;" placing himself alike dependent with us upon the help of God for power to keep God's law. Altho he was God in the flesh, he took our relations in his relation to the law, and overcame as we overcome. Being thus tempted in all points like as we are, he knows how to sympathize with and succor them that are tempted. Thus the Captain of our salvation was made perfect through suffering, so that "both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one, for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren." Such is the law in Christ.
The New Covenant.
The prophecy of Jeremiah concerning the new covenant is given in these words: "But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts and will be their God, and they shall be my people." This is precisely God's plan for Christ's character while he was upon the earth, as above expressed. The law in the hearts of his people is to produce in them the same character that was seen in Christ. When the law is fully implanted in the hearts of all of the new covenant children, they will have no further need to "teach every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them." There is no infidelity in the new covenant family. They are all acquainted with God. Their relation to his law is an evidence of their knowledge of him. "And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments." In such the character of Christ is developed. John says: "Whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected; hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked."
It is then possible for us to so perfectly live the law of love that we shall dwell in the perfection of the love of Christ. Since this is what we ought to do, this we can do. The way we undertake it will decide our success in the accomplishment of the object sought. Says Christ, "Without me ye can do nothing." Then the first thing to do is to unite with Christ in everlasting bonds of love. "He that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him." "Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not." The abiding presence of the sinless Saviour is our victory over sin. He is as victorious in human flesh today to live in perfect accord with the law of God, as he was when upon earth in the flesh eighteen hundred years ago.
The only question in our overcoming sin, is the question of our willingness to give him a constant abiding-place in our hearts. When he thus dwells in us, all the fulness of the Godhead is ours, that we may be complete in him. Then be assured; "Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world." When Christ thus dwells in us, the law will be revealed through us as it was through him. We will then love the Lord with all the heart, and our neighbor as ourselves. Then the blessed union will ever exist: "I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me." See also 1 John 3: 23. The law as it was in Christ, will thus be revealed through us, and the world will see Christ in us, and we shall then be "epistles of Christ, known and read of all men." Of such Christ says: "Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me; for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the world."
